


The Thin Blue Line

by Kalta79



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Police, Corruption, Drug Addiction, Drugged Sex, F/M, Promises, Prostitution, Relationship(s), Revenge
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-24
Packaged: 2018-11-03 13:06:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10967871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalta79/pseuds/Kalta79
Summary: AU story.  Elena is a junkie prostitute, Cloud is her dead brother, Reno/Rude are vice cops, Tseng is their captain, and Rufus is mayor. That's all I'm going to say without ruining the story.





	1. Chapter 1

Elena saw the car pulling up and frowned. She walked up to the passenger side. “What do you want this time?” she snapped.

“You should know that by now.” Reno replied.

“I do, but I don’t want or need your damned help.”

“Ellie…”

“Don’t _Ellie_ me. The only thing I wanted from you was to find my brother’s killer. It’s been three years. If that’s what being his best friend meant to you, I don’t want friends like you.” Elena stormed off.

Reno sighed and gestured for Rude to drive on as Elena rejoined the other hookers working that street.

“So who is that Elena to you?” Rude asked.

“I grew up with her older brother. After their parents were killed in a car accident, she disappeared for a while, and after Cloud and I went through the academy together, he found out she had been busted in a prostitution sting. He tried to help her, but she couldn’t stay clean. He had made me promise I’d look after her if anything ever happened to him, and it did. When she didn’t show up at his funeral, I found her in the hospital recovering from an OD. It‘s been downhill since then.” Reno said as he fidgeted with his fingernails.

***

Elena tried to control herself. _Damn Reno!_ Every time she saw him, she saw her brother’s face again, and remembered finding his body in the middle of their driveway, shot multiple times. Another car pulled up and Elena hurried to it ahead of the other girls.

“You lookin’ for some fun?” she asked the driver when he rolled down the window, then got in his car when he unlocked the passenger door.

***

Reno and Rude drove back to the station, and when they sat down at their desks, Reno pulled out a folder that looked empty.

“What’s that?” Rude asked.

“The file on Cloud’s murder. This is the whole case, not counting the autopsy findings and photographs of the crime scene.” Reno pulled out two pages of paper. “I’ve tried to get Elena to tell me what she remembers about when she found the body, but she never talked about it to anyone. It was a neighbor who called 911. She was hysterical by the time I got there.”

“Can I look at it? Fresh pair of eyes might help.”

“If you want, but there’s not much to help. The bullets were unidentifiable and of course no one saw anything, or if they did, they‘re not talking.”

***

A week later, Elena was getting out of a different john’s car, slightly puzzled. Reno had been stopping by every couple days, trying to talk to her, and she couldn’t understand why she only saw her brother’s face when she looked at him, but every john looked like Reno to her. It was ridiculous…he was the only man who never touched her, not even when they were kids and she had the biggest crush on him. Even his new partner Rude, Elena remembered having sex with him during that damned sting where Cloud found out what she had been up to. Another familiar car pulled up and the window rolled down, the driver gesturing for Elena to get in.

“What’s up?” she asked, not happy with another demand on her. She needed a fix, and soon.

“Boss wants to see you.” 

***

Elena went into the hotel room where a man was sitting on the bed watching TV. “You wanted to see me?” she asked, trying not to fidget.

“I understand you’ve been getting a lot of attention from the police, Elena.” the man said.

“Just one, he grew up with my brother.”

“Is that all?” The man opened the nightstand drawer and took out a familiar syringe.

Elena lunged for it, but the man caught her easily and held her firmly as he put the syringe back in the drawer.

“Please give it to me!” Elena pleaded.

“Just tell me what you and he talked about and it’s all yours.”

“I told him that he’s not a friend because he hasn’t solved my brother’s murder yet. Three years and that bastard has nothing! Please let me have it!” Elena tried to squirm out of his grasp.

“That’s all?”

“He thinks I might remember something just because I found the body. I don’t even want to remember him! Can I have it now?” Elena collapsed against him, exhausted by her struggling.

“So you don’t want to see him anymore?”

“No!”

“That’s a good girl.” He took out the syringe again from the drawer and injected her.

“Oh God…” Elena sighed and her body trembled with relief as the drug spread through her system. "Thank you." she mumbled.

The man left her on the bed and went out to the car that had brought Elena there, telling the driver to take him home. Once there, he picked up his phone and made a call.

“Nothing to worry about.” he said when the other person answered.

“Are you sure about that?” the other person asked.

“Yes, she doesn’t want anything to do with him, so I’m gonna keep her out of circulation for a while.”

“Just remember, it’ll all be on your head if anything gets out, _Captain_ Tseng.” The other person hung up.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elena's a guinea pig

The driver returned to the hotel room, following Tseng’s orders to make sure the girl stayed there until further notice. She was still there on the bed, oblivious to everything. Tseng had told him that if she got difficult, there were pills in the bathroom, but she was only to get one at a time. She was worth more alive than dead from an OD.

Elena was vaguely aware that there was someone else in the room, but it was of no importance to her. Whatever the boss had injected her with, it was more potent than anything she had tried before. She lay there in its thrall, unaware of the passage of time until she felt herself waking up, confused because she didn’t remember falling asleep. And she was hungry.

“So you’re awake. If you’re hungry, there’s a bag of stuff on the table.” A voice said.

Elena recognized the driver after a few moments of staring at him. Things were still so blurry…she stumbled over to the table and looked through the bag. It was all junk food, but it was food. She started to eat the donuts, but that reminded her of Reno, so she ate some chips instead. Her stomach protested the sudden influx of food, and she rushed to the bathroom to throw up.

The driver shrugged as he sat down and turned the TV on loudly to drown her out. A few minutes later, he remembered the pills were in the bathroom that she wasn’t to have unless necessary. He shot up out of the chair and was relieved to find the bathroom door unlocked, but she was slumped over the toilet, barely conscious. He got her undressed and into the bathtub, cleaning her up as best he could, then getting her out and putting her back into bed after he got a bathrobe on her. Then he went into the bathroom to flush the toilet and put the pills in his pocket.

***

Reno approached the girls. “Have any of you seen Elena?” he asked, not surprised to get a negative answer.

“Who’s your good-looking friend over there?” One of the girls asked, indicating Rude.

“Tifa!” Another girl exclaimed in dismay, grabbing at her arm. “Don’t tell them anything!”

“Ask him over here. I might be persuaded to talk to him.” Tifa said, wrenching her arm away from the other girl.

Reno went over to Rude and talked to him, and a couple moments later, he walked over to Tifa, who took him by the hand into the alleyway, out of everyone’s sight. Reno had to listen to the other girls complaining about Tifa always stealing the best customers until Rude came back out, his clothing slightly disheveled.

“She saw Elena get into a dark car a few days ago and hasn‘t seen her since, that’s all she knows.” Rude told Reno.

“Well that’s a big help.” Reno pulled a napkin out of his pocket and handed it to Rude. “Wipe that lipstick off your face, will ya?”

***

 

Elena took a sip of the soup the driver had ordered from room service. He was watching her carefully, making sure she only ate a little at a time until her stomach got used to real food again. Just then the phone rang, and the driver answered it.

“Hello?” the driver said.

“How’s she doing?” Tseng asked. “Is she giving you any trouble?”

“No sir.”

“How long was it before she came around?”

“Quite a few hours, sir.”

“Perfect. I’ll be stopping by tomorrow morning, and I’ll want her looking presentable.” Tseng hung up.

Elena looked at the driver suspiciously as she continued to eat slowly.

“Boss will be stopping by to see you tomorrow morning. You’ll want a shower before then.” he told her.

***

Elena was cleaned up when Tseng arrived the next morning, and he promptly told the driver to leave.

“I’ll want you back around 5pm. Good job, Reeve.” Tseng said as he closed the door after him.

“What do you want with me now?” Elena asked Tseng.

Tseng walked over to her and caressed her cheek. “I’ve got some men who are very interested in you.” He pulled out another syringe and gave her another dose, laying her down on the bed when she sagged against him.

The knock on the door he had been expecting came then, and he opened it to four men. “She’s all yours, I’ll be in the room across the hall, let me know when you’re done with her.”

***

Tseng sat watching TV in the other hotel room, pleased with himself. Those four men had very ‘unique’ tastes, and with Elena unaware of what was going on, there wouldn’t be any trouble with them satisfying themselves with her. And she was still making money for him, even with her being out of general circulation. When they knocked on the door to let him know they were done, they were very happy to pay him.

After they had gotten in the elevator, he went in to check on Elena. She was still out of it, which made cleaning her up easier. He smeared some ointment on the marks on her back and let her sleep it off. As soon as Reeve came back, he left again to go back home, and the phone was ringing when he entered.

“Yes?” Tseng said.

“Good job. You’ve made four new friends who look forward to future dealings.” The other person said.

“Yes sir. But she‘ll need at least a week to recover before she‘s ready for more.”

“So? You’ve got other girls. If they want another girl, they’re going to get it, understand?”

“Yes sir.”

“Good.” The other person hung up.

***

Elena slowly became aware of her surroundings again. The first thing she realized was that she hurt. Bad. She couldn’t find a comfortable position in bed, so she got up and tried to hobble to the bathroom. She fell down and Reeve woke up in the chair he had been using.

“What did you do to me?” Elena demanded as he tried to help her up.

“It wasn’t me!” Reeve protested.

“Don’t touch me again!” Elena snapped.

Reeve was unsure what to do, then he remembered the pills in his pocket. In his haste, he grabbed two and shoved them into her mouth.

The last conscious thought that Elena had was that maybe she needed to talk to Reno after all.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reno finds Elena at the hospital.

Reno was back at his desk, waiting for Rude to show up when the phone rang. “Yeah?” he answered. “She’s where? Okay thanks I’ll be right there.” He got up and was heading out when Rude showed up.

“Where ya going, partner?” Rude asked.

“One of the hospitals called back, Elena’s there.” Reno replied. “You coming?”

Rude nodded and followed Reno to the car.

***

“You did **what**?!” Tseng demanded to know.

“I accidentally gave her two of those pills at once and I thought she was gonna die, so I dumped her near the closest hospital.” Reeve explained.

“I’ll take care of it. You better hope she doesn’t remember anything.” Tseng slammed the phone down.

***

Reno approached the nurses’ station. “I’m looking for Elena Strife, I was told she was here.”

“Are you a family member?” The head nurse asked.

Reno took out his badge and flashed it at the nurse. “Is she here?”

“Room 209.” The head nurse said after checking on the computer. “If she has any family, I suggest you contact them.”

Reno thanked her and went to Elena’s room, where a doctor was checking on her. “What’s wrong with her, Doc?” Reno asked, though he already had a pretty good guess.

“Who are you?” The doctor demanded to know, relaxing once Reno flashed his badge again. “We’re not sure of all the drugs she had in her system, which was the main problem, but the other injuries didn’t help.”

“Other injuries?” Reno was surprised, he assumed it was just another of her ODs.

“She’s got wounds on her back, bruising on her legs, and the damage to her genital region is consistent with sexual assault. Someone put this gal through the wringer. At least the drugs probably kept her from feeling any of it.” The doctor said before he left.

Reno arranged the chairs so he could sit in one next to Elena’s bed and put his feet in the other one.

Rude walked in with a steaming cup of coffee. “You gonna babysit her?” he asked Reno.

“Yep. If you wanna go get back to work, it’s okay.” Reno said.

Rude shrugged. “I’ll be in the cafeteria if you need me.“ he said and left.

***

Elena was relieved to see Reno next to her bed when she woke up. He had fallen asleep in the chairs. If she wasn’t so weak, she would have pulled on the end of his ponytail like she used to do when they were kids. Instead she just called out his name weakly. He woke up and smiled at her.

“How ya doin’, kid?” Reno asked her, taking her hand in his.

“Not good.” Elena said. "At least the painkillers are working."

“Who hurt you?” Reno asked, with a dangerous edge to his voice that Elena had never heard before.

“I…I don’t remember. I don’t think I want to remember.” Elena replied.

Just then, Reno saw Tseng outside in the hallway, gesturing to him. “I’ll be right back.” Reno patted her hand and laid it back down on the bed.

“What’s up, Cap?” Reno asked as he joined Tseng in the hallway.

“The doctor and Rude filled me in. Does she remember anything?” Tseng asked Reno, being careful to stay out of Elena’s view.

“Nope.” Reno answered.

“I don’t know if that’s good or bad. Word on the street is that she stole fifty thousand dollars from her dealer before disappearing. She’s got a price on her head.” Tseng told him.

“She’s not a thief!” Reno exclaimed.

“Are you sure about that? Even if it’s not true, she’s still at risk. We’ll put her someplace safe when she’s released.”

“I’ll make sure she’s safe.” Reno said.

“You won’t be able to protect her for long, not with how much people are willing to pay to get hold of her.

“I’ll take care of her.” Reno stated firmly.

Tseng shook his head. “This is over your head, Reno. You don’t even have any reason to be involved in this professionally, this isn’t your case. I’ll suspend you if I have to.”

“Suspend me if you have to, but she’s my responsibility.” Reno left Tseng and went back to Elena’s room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reno thinks back to why protecting Elena is so important to him

“How soon can she leave?” Reno asked the doctor when he came back to check on Elena, who had fallen back asleep.

“I’d like to keep her here at least three days, because I’d want to make sure the drugs are out of her system when we release her, and we could monitor her during the worst of her withdrawal.“ The doctor replied.

“Could she leave today?”

“If it wasn’t for the drugs, she could be released anytime. Her other injuries are healing nicely without any sign of infection.” The doctor left as Rude came back in.

“What did you do to piss off the Captain?” Rude asked.

“What I do best.” Reno replied. “Would you mind going to get me a cup of coffee?”

“You’re really not leaving her side, are you?”

“Nope, and two creams and one sugar please.”

Reno went to use the bathroom as Rude left, and when he opened the door, he saw someone in an orderly outfit with a pillow in their hands approaching Elena‘s bed. They didn’t see Reno because he was behind them. He quietly got his gun out of the holster and approached the man. When the man got closer to the bed, Reno stuck the muzzle in their back.

“Unless you do exactly what I tell you, this will be your last day on Earth.” Reno said quietly. “Start by dropping that pillow.”

***

Rude walked back to Elena’s room with another hot cup of coffee and was greeted by an empty room, except for the handcuffed and gagged orderly. All those tubes attached to Elena were just lying on her empty bed.

“Dammit!” Rude exclaimed. “He really is the best at pissing people off!” He pulled out his cellphone and dialed a number. 

“He’s disappeared and taken the girl with her. What should I do, Captain?” Rude asked, moving the phone away from his ear until Tseng calmed down some. “Will do.”

***

Reno opened the door to his apartment and looked around before carrying Elena in and gently laying her down on his bed.

“Go back to sleep Ellie, you’ll be safe here for a while. I’ll be on the couch if you need me.” Reno told her.

Elena wouldn’t let go of his hand, and she started to pull him down on the bed.

“What are you doing?” Reno asked.

“I just want you to hold me til I fall asleep, that‘s all.“ she replied.

Reno did as she asked, and Elena put her head on his chest. She was soon lulled to sleep by the steady rhythm of his heart beating and the comforting warmth of his arms around her.

When he noticed Elena had fallen asleep, Reno realized he couldn’t get up without probably waking her up again. He wasn’t sure how smart it was to be in his bed with her. He still remembered that day when Cloud and Elena found out that their parents had been killed in a car accident, and the resulting incident.

***

“You wanna be a cop?” Cloud asked Reno in surprise as they were working on his car.

“Why not? You get a gun and a badge, and chicks love that danger stuff.” Reno replied.

“Yeah, that danger stuff is so much fun, nothing like getting shot at or stabbed for job fulfillment.” Cloud remarked.

“Shoot first and you’ll be fine.” Reno said.

“Do you want some lemonade?” Elena came out of the house with a glass of iced lemonade, and brought it over to Reno.

“Where’s mine?” Cloud asked his sister.

“In the house.” Elena waved negligently towards the door.

“Thanks, Ellie.” Reno said as he took the glass from her, noticing she was wearing her bikini.

“If you want more, just lemme know.” Elena said before walking back into the house.

Cloud watched Reno’s eyes follow his sister’s every move. “Hey buddy, we’re supposed to be working on the car, you’re not supposed to be working on Ellie.”

“Huh?” Reno asked.

“Leave her alone unless you’re serious.”

“You said we’re supposed to be working on this car, didn’t you?” Reno said, not wanting to talk about Elena anymore.

“Maybe I should be a cop too.” Cloud mused as they resumed their work.

A little while later, a police car stopped in front of their house, and the cop got out and approached them.

“Which of you is Cloud Strife?” he asked, looking down at his notepad.

“I am, what’s the problem, officer?” Cloud said as Elena came back out to see what was going on.

“There was a fatal car accident in front of the mall earlier today, and the victims have been identified as Tim and Rita Strife. I’m sorry.” the cop explained.

Elena screamed and fell to the ground. Reno reached her before Cloud and picked her up.

“I’ll take care of her.” Reno said. “You take care of this.” He took Elena back in the house and laid her down on the couch, pouring her a glass of lemonade.

“Here, Ellie, drink something.” Reno held the glass for her as she drank, her hands weren’t steady enough to hold the glass herself.

The day of the funeral, Reno and Cloud supported Elena through the service. At their house afterwards, Elena had disappeared, and Reno went looking for her at Cloud’s request. He found her in their parents’ bedroom, staring at the empty bed.

“Ellie.” Reno said gently, putting his hand on her shoulder.

“I’m an orphan now.” Elena said, a solitary tear coursing its way down her cheek.

Reno took her in his arms, not sure what else to do. “But you’re not alone, you’ve got Cloud and you’ve got me. I‘ll always be here for you.”

Elena cried more freely then, and Reno just held her, stroking her hair until she calmed down. When she looked up at him, the sight of her tear-stained face did something to him. He kissed her, unsure why he did it, but Elena responded far more than he thought she would, and before he knew it, she was pulling him down to the bed. That’s when he pulled away from her.

“Ellie, what are you doing? I was just trying to comfort you.”

“That’s all I wanted, some comfort. I’m sorry I’m so repulsive to you!” Elena snapped and stood up.

“You’re not repulsive at all, it’s just that…” Reno started to say.

“Am I interrupting anything?” Cloud said from the doorway.

“Nothing, nothing at all!” Elena exclaimed and stormed out the door.

Cloud gave Reno a sharp look before following his sister back to the guests. Reno rubbed the back of his neck and headed downstairs again as well.

***

Reno remembered he never got a chance to make that up to Elena, because it was soon after that she disappeared and returned as a junkie prostitute. Even if Cloud hadn’t made him promise to look after Elena two days before he was gunned down, Reno would have done it anyways, because he felt her owed it to her. Not only for that scene the day of her parent’s funeral, but because Cloud only became a cop because Reno was, and he was sure that was somehow related to Cloud’s murder.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trouble comes looking for Elena

The mayor was getting into his limo when someone else hurriedly got in as well, slamming the door shut.

“Who the hell do you think you ar…Tseng! What do you think you’re doing?” The mayor asked, then told the chauffeur to drive home.

“The girl’s on the loose, but she doesn’t remember anything.” Tseng explained.

“So it’s a mixed bag, but I believe I told you that if anything went wrong, it was on your head.”

“I know. I just wanted you to know what was going on, Rufus. I’ve made sure she won’t become a problem.”

“She already is, isn’t she?” Rufus remarked.

“What can I say, I never could resist a blonde.” Tseng replied.

“I remember…” Rufus said, a wicked gleam appearing in his eyes as he pulled Tseng to him.

***

Elena didn’t want to wake up just yet. Being in Reno’s arms was as perfect as she thought it’d be, even if it was platonic. This was the best a drugged out whore like her could expect. If she admitted she was awake, he’d let her go.

“Time for breakfast, sleepyhead.” Reno said, stroking her hair.

Elena scrunched her eyes shut tight in denial. Reno smiled sadly at her reaction. She was acting more like the Elena he used to know, but he had to remind himself that this Elena was different, and that according to the doctor, she had been savagely raped. He needed to find out who had done that to her, and they would learn all about savagery and subjugation in prison.

“Seriously, we need to eat and then get out of here. It’s not safe for you anywhere in town.” Reno let her go and got out of bed, heading for the kitchen.

Suddenly there was a loud noise, and Elena saw Reno’s body fly through the air, collapsing in a pile near his dresser.

“Reno!” Elena cried out, running over to him. Masked armed men swarmed in the busted door. 

After she made sure he was still alive, she hurriedly grabbed the gun in the ankle holster he had showed her last night, shoving it in the pocket of her jacket facing away from them. One of the men grabbed her by her throat and pulled her up.

“Boss has been looking for you.”

***

A persistent noise annoyed Reno. He didn’t want to wake up yet, he felt like crap, he needed more rest. Eventually the fogginess in his head went away and he remembered what happened and he shot up, hitting his head on the dresser, making things worse. He cursed as he realized the noise was his cellphone. He pulled it out of his pocket.

“Hello?” Reno crankily answered his phone.

“I got some more info from that Tifa chick.” Rude said. “I know where Elena’s boss can be found.”

“Gimme the address and I’ll take care of it.” Reno said.

“She hasn’t told me yet.” Rude admitted as Tifa ran her hands over his body while she nibbled at his neck. “Down girl, I’m on the phone now.”

“What?” Reno asked.

“Uh, nothing.” Rude said as Tifa moved her lips to his penis. “That’s not what I meant, Tifa! Um, I’ll meet you at your place when I’ve got the info.” Rude hung up.

Reno stared at his cellphone, wondering why Rude sounded so strained as he hung up.

Rude tossed his phone onto the pile of his clothes. He knew why Tifa got into prostitution, the girl was a damned nympho, and she wanted to enjoy her work. Two hours later, he was at Reno’s apartment.

“What the hell happened here?” Rude asked.

“They broke in and kidnapped Elena. We’ve got to find her, and fast.” Reno said.

“I got the address.” Rude waved a piece of paper around.

“Is that purple lipstick on it?” Reno asked.

“Uh, maybe.” Rude hurriedly shoved the paper back in his pocket. “You ready to go?”

“Just a sec.” Reno poured himself a glass of water and downed two painkillers with it. His headache did not want to go away. “Now we can go.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The conclusion

Elena tried not to fidget in the car. She hoped the shakes wouldn’t start until she finished this. She had lied to everyone about Cloud, she knew it was Tseng who had ordered her brother killed. She had been in his bed at the time, half-drugged but she remembered very clearly that she overheard him on the phone, getting the news that the job was done, and when she went home a little while later, she had found Cloud dead, and Elena knew it was her fault. He had told her earlier that he knew who was using her, and he was going to put a stop to it. This time, she was going to put a stop to it. She wasn’t going to let Reno end up like Cloud. Elena patted her pocket with the gun in it.

***

“This is it?” Reno looked at the dilapidated building as Rude pulled to a stop.

“That’s what Tifa told me.” Rude said.

“Well, let’s go.” Reno reached down to get the gun out of his ankle holster. “Dammit!”

“What‘s wrong?”

“I really hope she didn’t take my gun.” Reno said, just as they both heard a single gunshot coming from the building.

Reno ran out of the car towards the building, Rude following him.

***

Tseng grabbed the gun from Elena’s trembling hands. “You stupid little tramp!” He yelled as he pistol-whipped her until she was an unmoving heap on the ground. “It’s a pity that such a pretty girl would commit suicide, but it wouldn’t be the first time you tried it, only this time you succeeded.”

Tseng pointed the gun at Elena’s head as Reno burst into the room, tackling Tseng. There was a struggle and the gun went off again. Tseng stood up victorious, pointing the gun at Reno’s head. Elena came to, and screamed as she heard the shot, then looked in surprise towards the door as Tseng collapsed. Rude stood there with his gun in hand. Elena crawled over to where Reno lay bleeding. She put his head in her lap.

“Please don’t die, Reno. Don’t leave me!” Elena repeated over and over again as Rude called for an ambulance and applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

As the sirens got closer, Reno opened his eyes and smiled at her. “Didn’t I tell you I’d take care of you, Ellie?”

Elena nodded through her tears. She heard the paramedics coming up the stairs and looked towards the doorway for a moment, then turned back to Reno and nearly screamed when she saw his eyes closed again. He wouldn’t respond to her, and Rude had to carry her away kicking and screaming so she wouldn’t interfere with Reno’s treatment.

***

**Epilogue**

Elena had insisted on sharing a room with Reno at the hospital, but her head injuries were minor compared to Reno’s gunshot wound. He was lucky in that it had missed his organs, but he had serious blood loss, and they were waiting to see if there was any sign of infection. She sat next to his bed holding his hand whenever she could. The withdrawals weren’t as bad as she expected, because they gave her something to mitigate the effects.

It was four days before Reno regained consciousness. Elena had fallen asleep in the chair, her head resting on his bed. She woke up to him stroking her hair.

“Reno?” Elena asked hopefully. 

“The one and only. You look tired.” Reno replied as his eyes focused enough to look at her.

“I’ve been waiting for you to wake up, sleepyhead.”

“Come here.” Reno patted the space on the bed next to him, and Elena curled up against him. “What are you going to do now?”

“The hospital said they have a free treatment program available, and there’s also funding available for free room and board if I want to go back to college.” Elena said quietly.

“That sounds great to me.”

“Will you be…I mean…” Elena had trouble saying what she wanted to.

“I meant it when I said I’ll always be there for you.” Reno said, hoping she was finally going to get her life back on track. He was tired of it always being the wrong time to let her know how he felt about her. He pulled her closer so he could kiss her.

***

Rude answered his phone, surprised that his landline was ringing, it was usually his cellphone because it would be work if it was this late at night. “Hello?” he said.

“Congratulations on a job well done. You made sure everything pointed to Tseng as the culprit, and he’ll never be able to say otherwise.” Rufus said.

“Yes sir.”

“It was a pity because I rather enjoyed his company. Just make sure you don’t make the same mistakes he did in getting too involved with the merchandise.“

“Yes sir.”

“Good night.” Rufus hung up.

Rude put the phone down and turned over in bed, nudging Tifa. “Now where were we?”

***

“Who was that, dear?” A woman said, walking into Rufus’ study.

“Scarlet, if you so enjoy being Mrs. Mayor, I would strongly suggest you learn to mind your own business. Even though from what I hear from the hired help, keeping your mouth shut is not one of your talents.”


End file.
